Fishermen’s Trail Stage – Arrifana » Aljezur

On the route along the footpath beside the coast, it is worth paying attention to the dune vegetation, which includes aromatic shrubs (such as thyme, everlasting, rosemary, myrtle and French lavender), medicinal and edible plants (such as wild asparagus, rock-rose, groundsel, Portuguese crowberry or gorse) and endemic and rare plants (such as Cistus palhinhae, Thymus camphoratus or Linaria ficalhoana).

Nature on this coast has always provided abundant resources for humankind. There must be a reason why there are human traces here since prehistory. The list of occupants of this region is long and includes Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans and Arabs. This route passes the Ribat da Arrifana, an Islamic fortress-monastery occupied by warrior monks in the 12th century. It is the only ribat known in Portugal, classified as a National Monument. It was founded by Ibn Qasî, a political leader and spiritual guide of Sufism, the spiritual and mystical path of Islam. It was a fortress-monastery, dedicated to prayer and to keeping watch over the coast.

One of the resources still essential on this coast today is the goose barnacle. It is a must-try element of the local cuisine for anyone visiting the south-west coast (except from September to December, the closed season). The rocky coast pounded by the waves provides the necessary habitat for this species. Goose barnacles live in the band exposed at low tide, during the highest tides, on rocks that take the full, direct force of the breaking waves, which means that being a goose barnacle picker (perceveiro) involves taking great risks.